British Design Firm’s Concept Hopes to Improve Housing for the Urban Poor

In places like the West Bank and Gaza, where space is limited and there are high levels of poverty, housing options are limited and most are unaffordable. To combat this, British architects have designed a housing concept that grows with the homeowner’s bank account.

Weston Williamson + Partners (WW+P) designed an apartment with built-in space so it can expand incrementally as the resident’s wealth accumulates. The architecture firm used data collected from World Bank and Office of the Quartet surveys to provide people with long-term homes that they want. Each unit would be catered to different-sized families, ranging from one to three bedrooms, in flexible, but segregated spaces (see floor plans below).

(Weston Williamson + Partners)(Weston Williamson + Partners)

WW+P’s large-scale affordable housing concept would consist of basic units constructed around a central circulation core with generous outdoor space, which could then be converted to be part of the apartment. Floor slabs would be built to allow for expansion into these outdoor spaces, while pre-fabricated panels could allow for a variety of different configurations.

The building’s deep overhangs would provide necessary shade with the living space situated to receive plenty of sunlight. On the ground floor, units could be converted into communal facilities or areas for larger gatherings to foster a sense of community.